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The credit of the post's title goes to Serial Junkie's 'Yahaan-Bhi-Aman.'.😳...isshtupid bwaay was giving it to Paro and Maamisa , but having seen today's episode you will understand why i replaced it with Rudra.
Hmmm...What does Rudra give Paro? He gives her that " seven wonders of the world" waala wonder, ponder , wide-eyes, dropped jaw, confused munhh. She is not able to arrive on a conclusion on Rudra YET... Her mental wrestling in making an image of Rudra continues. One moment, she calls Rudra a 'Jallaad' ( the raayal worrd makes a waapsi today) for ill-treating and misbehaving with his father.
In the next moment, she takes the ilzaam game a notch higher by provoking Rudra that he can do what he likes but she will never give up her attempts to run ( the girl has some guts, man. Rudra had her pinned to a wall with a menacing intense glare and madamji was asking - Bolo, bolo, kya karoge abb? Talk about provoking a bhookha sher uncle ) ... And then, Rudra decides to let her soap-waali-heroine brain to do some exercise. He sees the blood on her hand and his anger and grip instantly loosen, face softens... and he pulls out a handkerchief to bandage her hand ( Rudra mein toh dayaa waali heroine ke bhi talents hainn) ...Jallaad mode goes for a walk and momebatti mode walks in...Paro's defiance takes a back seat and her " ye kaun sa specimen hai" look takes over.
Rudra gives an award winning performance of care, concern, mental and emotional manipulation, baiting- the -deer skilled talent - and as much as Paro says she does not trust him, she responds to his pseudo-warmth like a deer- caught- in- headlights...she keeps grumbling like a softie brat that he is this, he is that , she doesn't trust him... and Rudra, his eyes shuttling between genuine compassion and the 'khoobsoorat- woman- witness -syndrome' handles her like a slab of butter.
Rudra's gaze at Paro when she is being fed by him and looking at the clock to strike 12am , that gaze is of intense suspicion , plotting and planning...like a butcher eyes a hen... .Weirdly, the same eyes melt like coffee cake icing when he sees her blood, when he sees her struggle to eat the roti with both her hands...Point? Point ye hai ki Rudra ko Paro par chaahe lakh taras aata ho, kitni baar uskaa badtameez dil ice-lolly ki tarah melt hotaa ho... he listens only to his brain and his genes - both of them making him see Paro as a beautiful eclipse. Not light. Just an eclipse.
Its strange , but Paro's physicality does not register with Rudra at all today. He is not ruffled or disoriented by her proximity - there is no awkwardness from his side. Not when he pins her to the wall , not when he engulfs her frame in his arms to take her out of the haweli, not when he wraps her in a shawl. Its like he has fallen into the rhythm of doing this - of Paro's physicality and he just leaves it riddling in those gazes which leave Paro wide-eyed and well, a tad vulnerable. But Rudra's physicality ruffles Paro and registers with her. When she is engulfed and wrapped by his frame, she is more worried and struck by his proximity than worrying about escaping the haweli. No man has ever been this close to her - Rudra is the first one and the last one. So, her reaction to Rudra's physicality is naive, innocent and well, beautiful.
Paro told Rudra again today that she does not trust him . Yet, she did exactly what Rudra told her. Even when she walks out of the haweli, she turns to look back at him, with a trust-distrust look - yet she goes on the path that he has shown her. Of course, tomorrow, she will clearly see Rudra as someone who is manipulative - but you know what the catch is? By tomorrow, even Paro will know that she is capable of manipulation.
Rudra and Paro had such labyrinth layers today. All shades of sentiments and display of neurons. Still, you understand that Rudra's compassion brings down Paro's walls. And Paro's pain forces Rudra to give his menace a break and promote 'being human'.
For the rest, the best dialogues were given to Chaachi aunty. Poori family ka mausam bigaad ke rakh diyaa. Bechaari Maithli ko bhi lapete mein le liyaa. Sumer spells TROUBLE. It seemed like he was eyeing Paro. Not the room. Foreshadowing, much?
Dilsher has a soft spot for Paro but he told her that as much as he feels sorry for her, he cannot go against Rudra for her. Dilsher likes his bahurani in his own twisted way and i loved how Paro said 'Bapusa' , even if not in direct reference.
Anyway, two moments stood out for me:
1. Rudra wrapping Paro in a shawl and giving her 100 rupees as she left the haweli. No emotion on his face- all clinical - but such normalcy as though he has been doing it since ages.
2. Samrat's and Maithli's moment where Samrat wipes his wife's tears, holds her hand and they have an understanding silent conversation. No dialogues, but the essence of the scene came through. It was like, I know my Mom is laal mirchi ka powder, but I love you and i am always with you.
Rudra's eyes are too distracting for the viewer when he looks at Paro. You are unable to grip the whole scene because half your attention is on his coffee cakes. Put your Ray Bans back, baby. Paro can afford to go wide-eyed but the audience needs to SEE and UNDERSTAND the scene.
Anupamaa
